Bluebloods
by cardiffictionlocked1895
Summary: AU. Loki begins to develop his powers as the Warriors Three and Sif enter the picture. Pre-Thor. ThorxSif. Part 3 of Life as We Never Knew It series. I do not own Marvel or any of its characters
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1- Loki

I stood alone in my darkened room, hoping Thor wouldn't come bursting into the room at any moment like he usually does. I closed my eyes, focusing all my energy into getting this right, attempting to perfect something I had only seen glimpses of so far. At first, this particular ability of mine had somewhat alarmed me, happening randomly in flashes and nearly scaring me out of my wits each time.

Now, though, I knew better. I slowly opened my eyes. Five feet away to my left, I could see myself, but it wasn't in a mirror. This was another me, another Loki.

_Another Loki_. I smiled at the thought of what advantages that could give me.

I decided to test out my new skill. I lifted up my hand, watching my duplicate do the same. I tried it again, but this time I willed the copy not to follow my action. It did nothing. I stood perfectly still as I concentrated on making it walk toward me. After a few steps forward, the image wavered and flickered out, dissolving. Immediately fatigue hit me with full force, and suddenly I felt incredibly and unbelievably drained. Before I could stop myself, my eyes closed and I crumpled to the floor as the world succumbed to blackness.

"Loki…?" Thor's voice gradually increased in volume as I regained consciousness.

I opened my eyes and hurriedly got to my feet, glad that I had the energy to stand again. I must have slept for a while because it was light outside again, no longer nighttime. "What?"

"Why were you sleeping on the floor?" My brother asked me.

I shrugged in response, not fully knowing the answer myself.

"You do the oddest things sometimes. Anyway, I originally came up here to tell you that Mother says we're having guests today. They're young, like us."

"How old are they?" I was relieved that Thor didn't seem to be suspicious of my inadvertently sleeping on the floor, but I wanted to distract him even further from it so I asked the first question that came into my head.

"One of them is eleven, same as me, two are twelve, and the girl's ten."

I sighed. "_Perfect_. They'll probably all treat me like a kid, except for maybe the girl."

"I wonder if she'll be real pretty. I hope so." Thor mused, completely ignoring me.

"Why does it even _matter_?" I didn't quite understand the importance of girls' appearances to Thor.

"Because it does. Now let's go see if she really_ is_ pretty." Then he caught himself. "I mean, we should go meet all of them. Come on, Loki, they're waiting for us." He led me out of my room and down the corridor all the way to the main hall.

My mother came up to us. "There you are, Loki. I'd like you to meet our new guests." She gestured to each of them in turn. "Fandral, Volstagg, Hogun, and Sif. They'll be staying with us for a while, to train. If they get good enough, they'll become warriors for your father."

As she spoke, I quietly surveyed the newcomers: Sif, with a fiery look in her eyes; Fandral was handsome and clearly knew it; Volstagg was very large, to say the least; lastly, Hogun had this odd incredibly and obviously grim air to him. I figured they might be good fighters, even maybe Sif. But good friends, as I was sure my mother wanted them to be to Thor and me? That was the real question.

Thor looked at the girl Sif, incredulous. "_She's_ going to be a warrior?"

Mother glared at him. "Don't be rude, Thor. And yes, she_ is_ going to be a warrior."

Sif smirked at Thor. "What, does the idea of a lady being a warrior frighten you?"

Thor scowled. "No."

Mother ignored their exchange. "Alright, you can all talk later, at dinner, but for now I'll show them to their rooms." I think she really just wanted to get Thor and Sif away from each other before their argument could intensify, which, considering Thor's temper, I didn't doubt it could.

Thor and I left then, Thor still seething, but, as soon as we were out of earshot, he immediately started talking.

"She was even prettier than I'd imagined. I think I might be in love." He blurted out as we started up a flight of steps.

I snorted. "And I'm so sure she shares the feeling." He took a swing at me and I ducked out of range. "By the way, do you think they're going to train with us?" Since we were princes, we had to learn how to fight well enough ourselves, too.

He shrugged. "I don't know. I don't really care, as long as I can see _her_ again." He sighed wistfully.

"Now this, _this_ is a new level of pathetic overreacting I didn't even know you _could_ reach, Thor. But don't worry. She's got to have dinner, too. Chances are, as long as you don't spontaneously go blind or die, you'll see her again then. So stop mooning over her."

"I'm not 'mooning' over anyone!" Thor roared at me. By now we had reached the top of the stairs.

"Save it for someone who might actually believe you." I went into my room and shut the door behind me. It was time to try out my little magic trick again.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2- Thor

Dinner was an awkward event. We didn't do much except occasionally make polite small talk with one another as we ate, and, though I did get to know Fandral, Volstagg, and Hogun a bit better, I didn't get to exchange a single word with Sif.

So the next day I decided to make a move. We were all going to our first training together when I ran to catch up to her.

"Hey, Sif." She acknowledged my greeting with a stiff nod. I had hoped she wasn't still mad about what I had said yesterday about her being a warrior, but by the look of it, I wasn't in luck.

I redirected my efforts. "What do you think we're going to practice today?"

Sif shrugged. "I don't know. What were you working on before we came?"

I thought for a moment. "Mainly hand-to-hand combat."

She nodded, but made no other attempt at conversation. Neither did I, so the rest of the walk to training was silent.

By the time we reached the arena, my father was already waiting for us.

"Alright, let's get started."

Then he explained what we were doing today to all of us- close combat, like I had told Sif- and all too soon, Sif and I faced each other, stalling the fight. I didn't want to begin it. I was kind of angry at my father for setting up this fight; the idea of possibly hurting a girl still made me nervous.

I watched her take a deep breath, and she abruptly threw a punch at me. I swerved, but not quite fast enough. Her fist hit my side.

"You're pretty good." I appraised her.

I noticed something like pride flash through her eyes, but after only a second it was gone. In the split second afterward, I decided it was my turn to go first and hooked my ankle behind her knee, knocking her legs out from under her. Sif smiled, as if she had been holding out on me, and as I leaped at her, she flattened herself to the ground and slid under me in one rapid, fluid movement. I turned back to her but she was too quick for me, wrapping her thin arms around my neck and pulling me down, throwing her weight on top of me. I reached back and landed a hit so she released me, but almost as soon as I was free I felt something sharp digging into my palm. I suppressed a gasp as I wrenched my hand away.

"What was _that_?" I growled at her, breathing heavily.

Sif grinned innocently and showed me her long fingernails. "Sometimes it pays to be a girl." She laughed at my amazed expression and stood up, walking out the door.

Training was over for now, but I was only getting started with Sif.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3- Loki

I was on my way back from dinner, which had been right after training, when my mother pulled me aside from the others. She beckoned me to follow her to her to a room off to the side of a hallway.

"I have something for you. Wait here." She whispered, and then entered the room, cracking the door behind her. About half a minute later she was back again, gripping something wrapped in a cloth in her hand. She held it out to me. I took it and unfolded the cloth to reveal several gleaming, silver knives with a sharp tip on each end.

"Throwing daggers." I breathed, running my fingers over the smooth blades. "Thank you. I'll make good use of them." I turned to slip down the hall, toward my room.

As I left, Mother called out after me, "Just don't throw them at your brother!"

Soon I reached my room, but I didn't stay there for long. I snuck to the training arena after dark. It was against the rules, but I wanted try out my daggers. Besides, when I would show them off to everyone else, I wouldn't look stupid using the blades for the first time.

So I was by myself in the throwing range, standing about ten feet from the target. I practiced throwing my new, shining, and lethal weapons, loving the soft _whoosh_ noise they made as they sliced through the air. It wasn't long before I could hit the center of the target pretty consistently from around thirty feet away. By then I was exhausted, so I started back the way I had come.

I was creeping up the staircase, less than five yards from my room, when I heard the voice, coming from the bottom of the stairs.

"Loki, is that you up there?"


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4- Thor

I watched him stand there, unmoving, one foot on the next step, as he deliberated making a run for it. Eventually, though, he eased back onto the previous stair and turned to face me.

My brother was calm and collected, as always. "I didn't know you were awake, Thor."

"I could say the same about you." Then I noticed a flash of something silver near him. "Hey, what's that?"

"What's what?" he asked, sounding irritated for some reason.

Although I was sure, from his tone, that he was keeping something from me, I had no desire to have Loki mad at me. I'd made that mistake too many times in the past. "Nothing." I pretended not to care. "Thought I saw something, but I didn't."

He nodded, seeming to believe me, but there was no telling with Loki. "How about we both just go to bed and forget all this ever happened?"

I was about to agree, as I wasn't exactly excited about explaining why I wasn't asleep any more than he obviously was, but at that moment, I heard Father come up behind me. I whirled around.

"Why are you two out of bed? It's nearly midnight!" he stared fiercely at each of us in turn. My father wasn't often angry, but when he was, he was_ really_ angry.

"I was just out-" Loki began, but I cut him off.

"It's my fault, actually. I had Loki come out of his room because I had a question for him." The lie didn't come as easily as I hoped, but my father seemed to believe me.

"And why were you downstairs?" he inquired.

"I, um, had to, um, use the bathroom and, you see, the upstairs bathroom was, um, out of toilet paper. That was why I had a question for Loki. I, you know, wanted to know if he, like, had seen any extra toilet paper."

The incredibly and completely disgusted look Loki shoots at me is almost enough for me to regret covering up for him. Almost.

"I see." I can tell Father's a bit put off himself, but at least it keeps him from asking any more questions.

As soon as he's out of earshot, I breathe a sigh of relief. Unfortunately, that relief is short -lived.

"What was _that_?!" Loki bursts out at me. "You are officially the worst liar I have ever met! Really, youwere using the_ bathroom?_ That's the _best _you can come up with?!" he storms into his room, slamming the door and not waiting for me to reply.

Slowly, I force myself up the stairs and to his room. He's sitting on his bed, but when I open the door, he stands, crossing his arms. "What, Thor, are you going to tell me the bathroom really _did_ run out of toilet paper now?"

"No. I just wanted to say-" I stop short. "I mean, I was only trying to help."

When he speaks again his voice has lost its sharp edge. "Well, you of all people should know, I don't need help. I don't need you to defend me. I'm perfectly capable on my own."

I sighed. "I know, it's just…" I trail off.

"Goodnight, Thor." He shuts the door in front of me, and I am alone.

I consider opening it again and finishing my sentence, to tell him about how me defending him is practically a law of nature, as he is my younger brother. But somehow I felt that wouldn't go over well, so I just turn from his room toward mine, hoping that tomorrow will be easier. That not everything I did tonight was for nothing.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5- Sif

When I woke up, I found that there was a note lying on the ground that someone must have slipped under my door. I picked it up and read it:

Dear Sif,

If you have any feelings for me at all, meet me in the pavilion at dusk tonight.

Thor

Wow, I hadn't seen that coming. Or maybe I had. I thought back to all the times I'd talked with him, and how I'd caught him looking at me occasionally. He definitely liked me, but did I like him? That was the real question.

I looked down at the note in my hand, and I knew the answer.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6- Thor

The next morning, Loki pretty much totally avoided me, and luckily there was no mention from anyone about last night.

I was still keeping my fingers crossed about another thing, though.

The day seemed to go unusually fast. All too soon it was time for me to meet Sif, if she was coming. Night was beginning to fall as I slipped out to the pavilion to see if she would show up. I stood there for a long while, watching the sky darken. It came to a point where I decided to wait five more minutes and if she didn't come I'd leave. Three minutes into that decision Sif finally appeared.

"I thought you wouldn't come." I whispered simply to her.

"But I'm here now." She was clearly waiting for me to do what I had come here to do.

So I did it, leaning forward to kiss her. She realized what I was doing and tilted her head slightly as our lips met.

_FWACK! _We jerked apart abruptly as we heard a loud noise. I turned to see a double-edged knife, bright in the moonlight, stuck in a tree a mere foot away from my head. In that second, I remembered the flash of silver I had seen Loki hiding, and then the pieces all fell into place.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7- Loki

I hadn't meant to narrowly miss Thor's head with my dagger. I didn't even know he was there until I heard him gasp. The moment I did, though, I ran. I didn't think he'd made the connection between me and the knife, but if he had, I didn't particularly want to be there to find out.

It wasn't like I had done it on purpose. I couldn't sleep, so I went outside to throw my daggers, regardless of what Odin might do if he caught me again. I figured it would be safer in the outdoors, because, since it was the middle of the night, no one would be out there. The last person I suspected was Thor, after what happened yesterday, but at least now I understood why he was up. As far as I knew, he hadn't spoken to Sif all day today, so he must have said something to her last night about meeting him. It made perfect sense. He made it obvious he liked her, so why shouldn't she feel the same way? Of course, I hadn't expected to see them almost _kiss_, or that I would be the one to inadvertently stop them.

As much as I wanted to go and retrieve my dagger, I stopped myself. Thor and Sif might still be there, and if I went back now, they'd know for sure who it was, and they don't know I wasn't aiming at them. Thor would be furious, but most likely not because I threw the knife; rather, he'd be madder about the effect of the action- he didn't get to make out with Sif.

The single option I had left was to flee the scene and come up with a good cover story. If Thor knew that the dagger belonged to me, he wouldn't fall for my lie. That wasn't really an issue, though. The only person I had to get to listen to me was my father. And as he likely didn't exactly trust Thor after last night, well, then that wouldn't be difficult…

I smiled, a plan taking shape in my mind. This was going to be all too easy.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8- Thor

"I was having trouble sleeping. I kept having nightmares. I went out to take a short walk to try to clear my head, and I heard noises coming from through the trees and saw shadows moving. I don't know, it might have been the nightmares getting to me. Anyway I had a knife with me, for protection, so I threw it and missed on purpose. I was only trying to scare whatever it was. Of course, I didn't know that 'it' was Thor." Loki explained to my father, looking aggravatingly innocent.

One glance at my father's face and I knew he trusted my brother's words. I would have, too, but I knew Loki better. Perhaps his lie was based on the truth, but that didn't change that it was a lie.

Then Odin turned toward me, and a much more pressing problem came into view: what would I tell him? I didn't think it'd go over well if I admitted I had gone out to see if Sif would kiss me. She would, I knew that now. If only she had…

"Thor?" My father's voice called me back to the present. "Why were _you _out again, even after I warned you just yesterday about this very thing, and why in this realm was Sif with you?"

"I, um…" I trailed off, panicking. Suddenly I realized I would have to be at least partly honest if I wanted him to believe me. "I wanted to tell her something. That I, uh-" I took a deep breath "-like her. Just a little bit, though."

My father nodded, pondering it. "Alright then." He said finally, and I sighed in relief.

He let Loki and I go back to our rooms after that, and as we were walking back, my brother sneered into my ear, "Just a _little_ bit." He imitated me. I smacked him. He smirked at me one more time before vanishing into his room.

As I approached my own door, however, someone grabbed me from behind and I whirled around to see Sif.

"I never got my kiss." She whispered.

I merely pulled her face closer to mine and leaned in to press our lips together


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9- Loki

I decided sleep would be impossible after I saw Sif and Thor _really_ start making out with each other. They thought I was inside my room, but I actually had opened the door a crack and peeked at them when I heard whispers.

Their soulful, intense kiss brought back memories I didn't want to revisit. Being pinned to a wall, a girl who was practically a stranger fiercely mashing her lips against mine. Not for the first time, I shuddered as I thought of Mila.

Since sleep clearly wasn't an option, I began practicing my newest ability. Lately it was improving; I could go much longer without becoming exhausted and I didn't pass out anymore.

Effortlessly I made a duplicate of myself appear in front of me, and without my having to move I willed it to walk across the room and gesture like it was throwing a dagger. One day soon I'd make it throw a real knife, but I couldn't try it in here.

After about ten minutes of moving the figure around the room I was much more tired, and my copy faded out as I sunk down onto my bed. It wasn't long before the world fell away into oblivion.


End file.
